Fall Starters
by CRMediaGal
Summary: A series of SSHG autumn/Halloween-related drabbles based on Tumblr's "Fresh Starters" Prompts. Each prompt is based on a quote. Rated T, AU, Post-Hogwarts.
1. Please enough with the pumpkin spice

**A/N : The following is the first (of three) autumn/Halloween-themed SSHG drabbles chosen by lovely folks on Tumblr. Each prompt was based on a "Fall Starter" and serves as the title for each drabble. **

**I hope you enjoy these. And p** **lease take a moment to review, if you would.** _ **Without your thoughts, it isn't worth sharing.**_

 **Disclaimer : _Harry Potter_ is copyrighted to and belongs to JK Rowling. I'm just playing in her sandbox and own none of her associated characters. Artwork is credited to Alena-KP.  
**

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 ** _"Please, enough with the pumpkin spice."_**

 **(Prompt chosen by _inquisitivewitch_ )  
**

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Severus's patience was utterly spent. The pain in his lower jaw, too, was becoming excruciating from clamping so hard.

When would the sexy creature in his fold cease her teasing? Didn't she understand that sucking the creamy, pumpkin spice foam off of her finger had been arousing for about the first five minutes? After fifteen minutes of her taunting him every which way with the bloody stuff, however, his pleasure–and his restraint–was waning.

"Hermione–"

"Just one more," she persisted, offering another flirtatious batting of her long eyelashes.

Severus scowled. _Oh. Fucking. Hell._ That witch and her irresistible ways were too damn endearing for her own good... _and_ his. He was a helpless fool when it came to Hermione Granger's every cheeky demand (even if he didn't like it), and the clever thing _knew_ she had Severus Snape pegged like some helpless, pining puppy dog.

 _Her and her bloody pumpkin spice._

Hermione had barely tasted her latte, which Severus had politely bought for her at a small cafe in Diagon Alley, knowing that it was her favourite flavour. Shortly thereafter, they had snuck into an alley and huddled together in the dark behind some bins like two horny teenagers, with Severus unable to keep his hands to himself. He had thought Hermione's intentions obvious until she had proceeded to torment him with this incessant, finger-licking foreplay.

As Hermione dipped her index digit into the foam again and brought it to Severus's lips, his refusal to open his mouth caused her brow to furrow in confusion. "Open up, silly," she giggled.

The slim parting of her own delectable, puffy lips made the wizard's groin ache. " _Please_ , Hermione," he implored, snarling lowly and close to her face, "enough with the pumpkin spice already."

Hermione frowned. "I thought you were enjoying it?"

"I was, but I'd much rather taste _you_ already, you minx."

To Severus's stirring excitement, Hermione's face lit up with laughter. "I suppose I've tormented you enough, haven't I?"

Severus arched an eyebrow at that. "Oh? You _enjoy_ teasing me, you say?"

Hermione smiled gamely. " _You_ delight in toying with _me_ fairly often, Severus Snape, so consider it payback." She added, with a firm jab to the centre of his chest, "Especially in how you use that tongue of yours on me. What do you think I've been doing all this time, just provoking you because I can?"

Severus blinked, taken aback, whilst Hermione shot him a knowing smirk. Then she unexpectedly tossed the latte over her shoulder, directing his attention towards the mess behind her. The contents spilt onto a bin and the snow-covered pavement, infusing the alley with its lingering, comforting scent.

"That latte cost me three bloody galleons–" Severus groused in annoyance, until his lips were suddenly smacking Hermione's and knocking him off kilter.

That quickly shoved the waste of a few precious galleons to the back of Severus's mind. _Finally_ , what he had been waiting for! She was far more precious, after all, and she smelled of falling snowflakes, lip-bomb, and that ruddy latte he thought he despised; but now?

 _Perhaps pumpkin spice isn't so bad after all_. Severus readily deepened the kiss and pulled Hermione into the warmth of his arms, smiling contentedly against her mouth.

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 **A/N #2 : Personally, I can't get enough pumpkin spice _everything_ , but to each his/her own!**

 **Thank you to those who review. Second one coming soon...  
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	2. You sound sick Are you sick?

**A/N : Thank you so much to those who are reviewing, following, and fav'ing! I'm pleasantly surprised by your responses. Here's the second prompt! **

**Disclaimer : _Harry Potter_ is copyrighted to and belongs to JK Rowling. I'm just playing in her sandbox and own none of her associated characters. New characters belong to me.**

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 ** _"You sound sick. Are you sick?"_**

 **(Prompt chosen by _jensteed_ )  
**

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Hermione coveted her warm cup of tea between her lukewarm palms, happy to be cosied up next to her husband for added warmth. Her throat had felt scratchy much of the day, and the burning fireplace just wasn't providing enough heat. The warming charm they had placed on the small cottage was proving rather weak, but neither seemed particularly keen on fixing it, however, for their intertwined spot on the couch–and their engaging, separate books–was simply too pacifying to bother with fussing about for their wands.

The married couple had been looking forward to getting some use out of the new home-away-from-home they had purchased over the summer, and yet, this winter weekend was the first they had been able to properly get away and enjoy it.

An unanticipated snow storm had them getting even _more_ out of it than they had bargained on. Luckily, they had brought plenty of work with them (and reading material, of course) to occupy themselves over the four-day stretch they had been cooped up indoors like a pair of trapped, confined muggles.

It was quite fun, to be perfectly honest–pretending that they had no way out and nowhere else to be–but their initial mini-weekend getaway couldn't last much longer. Hermione had to return to her pile of papers at the Ministry, and Severus likely had a handful of potion orders awaiting his signature back at their flat in London.

"One more day," they had agreed upon that morning, each privately mourning the end to their precious time off together.

Hermione was suddenly thrust out of her warming thoughts–and position–by a mighty sneeze to her left. Her tea nearly flew out of her hands in surprise.

"Sorry," Severus grumbled apologetically; or croaked, rather.

"Not at all. And bless you," she said, turning to her husband just as he stifled another sneeze into his fist and dug into his pockets to retrieve a handkerchief. He couldn't seem to find one and muttered irritably to himself. "Here, Severus." She elbowed him to take hers.

"Always prepared, you are," he mused, with a half-cocked smirk, as he accepted the dangling, pink-coloured handkerchief and proceeded to blow his nose.

"You're welcome," Hermione teased. She stuck out her tongue, though Severus missed the cheeky effect, and looked him over thoughtfully.

Severus nodded an appreciative 'thank you' and sniffed a few times before stowing the handkerchief away. The rims around his eyes, Hermione realised, were red and his long nose and pale cheeks were splotchy, indicative of a cold.

"You sound sick, love." She reached out and pressed the back of her hand to his forehead. He didn't feel warm, but he was looking rather worn down.

Severus blinked and returned her gaze with a certain worry of his own. "You're trembling, Hermione." He snatched her hand and safeguarded it within his in an attempt to warm her up.

 _Don't tell me..._ Both seemingly reflected at the same time as they stared into one another's eyes; but then Hermione was overtaken by a brief coughing fit.

"Are _you_ sick, too?" Severus returned with a troubled snarl. He roped a protective arm around Hermione's shoulder and pulled her against him.

"Maybe," she hacked again. She paused to gingerly sip her tea. "Must be our pathetic warming charm. We really should've done a better job of that. Although..."

Not missing the obvious suggestion to her tone, Severus shot Hermione an inquisitive look over. "Did you have something in mind?"

"Well...if we were both sick...it _would_ warrant us sticking around here–"

"For another day or two," he finished, reading Hermione's thought process.

"Precisely! Why should we venture out into the cold tomorrow, even to Apparate, if we aren't well? We might catch our deaths out there."

"Indeed." At the enticing grin that morphed across his wife's mouth, Severus snorted and shook his head, amused. "Clever, naughty witch." He directed a raised, provocative eyebrow at her. "Does this mean we'll cook each other hot meals?"

Hermione giggled, "Oh, yes, that can be arranged."

"Take a bath together?"

"You're reading my language, Mister."

"Snuggle underneath the covers?"

Hermione laughed harder–and regrettably had to clear her sore throat–at her snarky wizard's use of the mere word 'snuggle'. It was one of his confidential, favourite ways to pass the time with her (and, naturally, she loved it).

"Oh, most definitely!" she concurred once she had recovered.

"And you'll rub my feet, perhaps?"

At that, Hermione's expression soured. "Only if you'll make it up to me later."

Severus's dark irises glistened with mirth. "I'd be much obliged."

"You'd _better_!" Giving a broader smile, Hermione leaned in to kiss and nuzzle one of Severus's cheeks. "And I was only joking about making it up to me, love. Shall we?"

Some hot soup, Pepper Up, and bona fide snuggling in bed sounded like the perfect way to end their evening (and maybe the next day as well, _if_ they were fortunate enough to still be under the weather).

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 **A/N #2 : Hope you enjoyed le fluff. Thank you to those who review! And with the elections tomorrow, I'll likely put off posting the last prompt 'till Wednesday. **


	3. Wanna go out for Halloween?

**A/N : Last one. Thanks, as always, to those who've encouraged me and followed these along. Hopefully they've brought a smile to people's faces...**

 **Disclaimer : _Harry Potter_ is copyrighted to and belongs to JK Rowling. I'm just playing in her sandbox and own none of her associated characters. New characters belong to me.**

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 ** _"Wanna go out for Halloween?"_**

 **(Prompt chosen by _lovinpugs-blog_ )**

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Hermione blinked hard, as if _that_ would somehow improve her hearing. Everything felt fuzzy and…off. Had her ears deceived her of what the sour, grump of a man towering in front of her had just asked; or had it all rung true?

"Granger?" he pressed, snapping the witch's mental derailment back to the matter at hand.

"Oh! Well... I..."

It didn't make any ruddy sense to Hermione's befuddled thinking. They had been colleagues for years– _Four wretched years!_ –and, in that time, Severus Snape had _never_ expressed an interest in Hermione beyond an occasional spat of verbal torment or obnoxious debating. There had been no romantic gestures, no indications of flirtatious scheming, only incessant teasing and regular put-downs.

Eventually, Hermione had come to realise that it was all in good jest (and purely to get a rise out of her) but still... _A date? A real one? For._ Real _?_

'Wanna go out for Halloween?' he had casually proposed as they gathered up their belongings to leave work, which they regularly did together.

Hermione's puzzled frown had deepened, her reflexes unable to prevent the wave of shock that washed over her face. She had long suspected that this date was one of the hardest of the year for Severus, what with the unfortunate death of Lily Potter that had spurred the extraordinary measure of guilt that made him switch allegiances and protect Hermione's best friend from infancy.

She had made a point of never asking after him, however. She knew the wizard wouldn't appreciate her probing, not to mention the nagging reminder of all he had once lost.

The question remained, however: why now?

 _How long have I been waiting for him to ask me out_ , her mind was practically screaming in frustration (and relief), _and he randomly asks_ _me_ now _of all days?!_

Perhaps it was Hermione's lot in life to _never_ figure out the impossible, irritable man she had come to pine for (and figured that he would _never_ see her as anyone other than a coworker): Severus bloody Snape.

"Never mind," he growled softly, regrettably, as if it was suddenly too painful to talk. When Hermione peered up into his face, she was shocked that he was openly sulking. Without so much as answering him, she had managed to unintentionally wound him with her silence. "Forget what I said. I'll see you tomorrow."

In a rush, Severus snatched up his cloak, satchel, and the emerald scarf she had knitted for his birthday from the back of his chair and strode towards the exit, leaving her stranded in the centre of their office.

 _DAMN IT, HERMIONE! ANSWER HIM!_ _NOW'S THE TIME TO MAKE YOUR MOVE!_

Hermione scrambled to stop him from leaving, throwing herself in front of the door just as Severus reached for the handle. He barked at her to get out of his way, but Hermione pleaded over his snipping and snarling, "Wait, Severus, _please_! You misunderstand! I - I'm sorry. Your question just caught me off guard is all."

"There's no need to–"

" _Oh, do shut it, Severus_!" she huffed and was pleased at the quirked, stunned eyebrow he raised. "Let me answer you before you go charging off in an unnecessary strop with me!"

"I'm _not_ in a strop!" he countered, scowling, to which Hermione stepped forward and jabbed him firmly in the chest.

That bold gesture seemed to knock the wizard's misconceived resentment down a few pegs. He stepped back, bereft and surprised.

"Then wait for my answer before you storm out!" she insisted.

Showcasing severe restraint, Severus clamped his mouth shut and waited, allowing Hermione to take another breath and step closer. She was forced to crane her neck in order to stare him down directly.

"As a matter of fact, Severus," she, at last, replied steadily, confidently, "I would _love_ to go out with you this evening."

It took the normally cool and aloof wizard a considerable moment to find his footing. "Really?" he eventually blurted out and blushed to the tips of his ears.

With a smile, Hermione took another step towards him, her chest brushing against his. "Yes, _of course_. My only question is: what took you so long?"

A short pause ensued before he managed to say–croak, rather, "What?"

"I said, what took you so long to ask me out?" she repeated, with an added chuckle.

Severus stiffened, visibly struggling to maintain eye contact. "Erm, well, I... I didn't think...you'd be interested."

Amused, and with a shake of her head, Hermione reached out and seized the front of his robes. She tugged at them to bring his face down to meet hers. "Well, you were dead wrong, Severus Snape," she murmured. Then, much to his staggering delight, she secured her affections by placing her lips gently to his, parting them only to reiterate, before continuing to snog him with heated passion, " _Dead. Wrong_."

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 **A/N #2 : _Until next time._**


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